The
iconic statue, made of cement and painted bronze, was opened to the public
following a morning Mass at San Isidro ng Magsasaka parish church during its feast
in front of the Plaza delos Santos and just across the historic town hall.
The
monument was a pet project of the 1958 class of the General de Jesus Academy
High School led by its president, Dr. Romeo Lorenzo.
Lorenzo,
younger brother of former fourth district Reps. Victorio Lorenzo and Julita
Lorenzo-Villareal, said the statue was a fitting tribute to delos Santos, more
popularly known as Don Panyong, considered one of the most illustrious Novo
Ecijanos in history.
“This
is in fact long overdue and we should be proud of him, the first democratically
elected governor of Nueva Ecija,” Lorenzo said.
The
event was graced by relatives and granddaughters of Delos Santos among them
former press undersecretary and now Manila Bulletin vice president for public
relations Carmencita “Ching” delos Santos-Suva, Angelita delos Santos, Julieta
delos Santos and Yolanda delos Santos, Mayor Cesario Ileto Jr., Vice Mayor
Gerry dela Cruz, Councilor Larry Jimenez and municipal administrator Napoleon Ocampo among others.
Funding
for the project was sourced from the municipal government and a cash donation
from Santos-Suva.
“I
thank this class for recognizing my lolo,” Santos-Suva said, recalling that the
library put up by his grandfather was often visited by past presidents,
including Emilio Aguinaldo and Manuel Luis Quezon.
She said they
are planning to put up a museum in his honor.
Considered
a genius in his time, Delos Santos, whose first name Epifanio was drawn from the word “epiphany” (divine
manifestation), has excelled in no less
than 28 professions.
He
was born April 7,1871 in Malabon as the only child of Don Escolastico delos Santos and Dona Antonina
Cristobal.
Delos Santos graduated with a degree in Bachelor of Arts at
Ateneo de Manila as a summa cum laude and finished his law course at the University of Sto
He was an
academician and scholar, bibliographer, artist, biographer, civil servant,
critic, essayist, ethnographer, journalist, historian, jurist, librarian,
linguist and polyglot, monographer, musician, novelist, paleographer,
philanthropist, philologist, philosopher, poet, researcher and revolutionary
leader all rolled into one.
He
was the first Filipino to have been elected Novo Ecijano governor in 1902. He was reelected in 1904.
He
was also associate editor of the revolutionary newspaper La Independencia in
1898 with the pen name Solon. As publisher, he published Tagalog Literature and
the “Confidential Letter of Dr. Jose Rizal” among others.
In
1900, he was named district attorney of this town and in 1904 was designated
provincial fiscal in Bulacan and Bataan .
He
was known to have built the largest collection of books and antiquities in the
country, including 2,000 book titles, many of whom were extraordinary.
Epifanio
died of cardiac arrest on April 28,1928 in Manila at the age of 57.
In recognition of
his contributions to arts, culture and the country’s history, the
23.8-kilometer Highway 54 passing through six cities and 17 towns in Metro
Manila was named Epifanio delos Santos Avenue (Edsa) by virtue of Republic Act
2140 on April 7, 1959.
Edsa
is now considered the most historic highway where two People’s Power
revolutions were staged, first in 1986 and second in 2001 which led to the
ouster from Malacanang of sitting presidents Ferdinand Marcos and Joseph
Estrada, respectively.
Filipino
and foreign experts have heaped praises on Delos Santos .
Claro
M. Recto described him as the foremost literarian in the Philippines while American
historian Austin Craig called him as the island’s best writer in literature.
“Powerful
intelligence, a formidable receptacle of culture and gifted with words,” said
Jaime De Veyra, resident commissioner to the US
House of Representatives, in reference to Delos Santos . (Manny Galvez)
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